Purrfect life the myster.., p.15
Purrfect Life (The Mysteries of Max Book 42),
p.15
“Just like with Josslyn’s purse.”
I nodded. “He put up a fight when they grabbed him, but it was just a token fight. I think at that point he knew the game was over. Chase said he even looked relieved when he finally confessed. Nine years he’d been living with that secret, and all this time he must have lived in fear that someone would recognize him and the whole house of cards would come crashing down.”
“And then suddenly it did,” said Brutus.
“He must have been very upset when Josslyn recognized him,” said Dooley.
“It gave him the shock of a lifetime,” I said. “The one thing he’d been afraid of all this time, looking over his shoulder to avoid, suddenly happened. And it was the beginning of the end for him.”
“So what’s going to happen now?” asked Harriet. “Will Rosa have to change her name again and move to another town?”
“I don’t think so,” I said. “Now that the whole truth is known, and it has become obvious that her first husband was framed, she doesn’t have to hide anymore.”
“She will be poor again, though,” said Harriet. “All that money Tilton stole will have to be returned to the bank.”
“So she’ll get a job. It’s better than believing that your husband is a bank robber and left you for his secretary.”
“I think they’ll be just fine,” said Dooley, the eternal optimist. “And she can always write a book about what happened. People love those true crime stories. Or start a podcast!”
“A podcast?” asked Harriet.
“Oh, yes,” I said. “True crime podcasts are all the rage right now.”
“They are, huh?” She cut a quick glance to her boyfriend, who was tackling a particularly chewy piece of meat. “Did you hear that, angel face? True crime podcasts are all the rage right now. Lots of money to be made.”
Brutus abruptly stopped chewing the meat—it was to no avail anyway, as it was charred to a crisp. “Money?” he said, perking up at the delicious sound of the word.
“So maybe we should do a podcast,” said Harriet. “We have plenty of true crime experience, being part of this town’s leading team of detectives.”
“You’d still need a human to host it,” I pointed out. “Same as with your, um, Baker Street Cats project.”
“How is that going, Harriet?” asked Dooley innocently.
“It’s not,” Harriet snapped. She then gave me a sweet look. “Max? Why don’t you give us the skinny on all the cases you’ve worked, and we’ll ask Scarlett to read them out in our new podcast?”
“Scarlett again?” I said. “So she’s able to speak our language now, is she?”
“No, she’s not.”
“Hopeless case, that one,” Brutus grumbled, making a throwaway gesture with his paw.
“But she does have a great voice,” said Harriet. “And so I was thinking—”
“We were thinking,” Brutus corrected her.
“That maybe you could tell your stories to Odelia, and then Odelia could type them up and Scarlett could read them on this podcast thingy.”
“Why are you asking me?” I said. “You know the stories just as well as I do.”
“Well, there is the small matter of royalties,” Harriet said.
“We’ll share them,” said Brutus. “Equal shares for all of us.”
“Oh, goodie,” said Dooley.
“Not you, Dooley,” Brutus grunted. “You’re not a part of this.”
“You’re the invisible cat, Dooley,” I quipped.
“Just so,” said Brutus. “So that’s fifty percent for me, and fifty percent for Harriet, and…” He frowned. “Mh. There seems to be something wrong with my math.”
“Oh, Brutus, baby doodle, it’s simple. Max gets ten percent as the original author, and the rest is to be divided between us as the podcast creators.”
“And Scarlett?” I asked. “Doesn’t she get anything?”
“Oh, she’ll do it for the exposure,” said Harriet. “And so will Odelia. This will be great for that little paper of hers.”
And so Brutus and Harriet took off, to discuss the terms of their new podcast deal, and Dooley and I laid down our heads and decided to have a little postprandial nap.
“What are the chances that this new podcast will take off, Max?” asked Dooley.
“About as much as they’re willing to offer Scarlett and Odelia,” I said, yawning. “In other words: zero.”
“It doesn’t seem fair, Max.”
“What doesn’t, Dooley?”
“Well, you’re the one who solves all these murders, and the only ones who get credit for it are Odelia, Chase and Uncle Alec.”
“That’s life, Dooley,” I said. “Besides, I don’t need credit. As long as I get plenty of kibble and cuddles, I’m a happy cat.”
“Still, it doesn’t seem right.”
I just shrugged. Dooley might have a point, but frankly I didn’t really care about fair. As long as the people who had committed these terrible crimes got their just reward, it was fine by me. But then someone shouted my name, and when I opened my eyes, I saw that all the humans around the table had raised their glasses, and were toasting… me!
“To Max!” said Odelia. “The greatest cat detective ever!”
“To Max!” the others all chimed in.
“Oh, you guys,” I muttered, and I may or may not have teared up at this point.
Okay, so I do like to get the credit.
What do you expect?
I’m only feline, after all.
THE END
Max & Dooley will return in
PURRFECT THIEF
Thanks for reading! If you liked this book, please share the fun by leaving a REVIEW!
And if you want to know when a new Nic Saint book comes out, sign up for Nic’s mailing list: nicsaint.com/news.
About Nic
Nic has a background in political science and before being struck by the writing bug worked odd jobs around the world (including but not limited to massage therapist in Mexico, gardener in Italy, restaurant manager in India, and Berlitz teacher in Belgium).
When he’s not writing he enjoys curling up with a good (comic) book, watching British crime dramas, French comedies or Nancy Meyers movies, sampling pastry (apple cake!), pasta and chocolate (preferably the dark variety), twisting himself into a pretzel doing morning yoga, going for a run, and spoiling his big red tomcat Tommy.
He lives with his wife (and aforementioned cat) in a small village smack dab in the middle of absolutely nowhere and is probably writing his next ‘Mysteries of Max’ book right now.
www.nicsaint.com
Also by Nic Saint
The Mysteries of Max
Purrfect Murder
Purrfectly Deadly
Purrfect Revenge
Purrfect Heat
Purrfect Crime
Purrfect Rivalry
Purrfect Peril
Purrfect Secret
Purrfect Alibi
Purrfect Obsession
Purrfect Betrayal
Purrfectly Clueless
Purrfectly Royal
Purrfect Cut
Purrfect Trap
Purrfectly Hidden
Purrfect Kill
Purrfect Boy Toy
Purrfectly Dogged
Purrfectly Dead
Purrfect Saint
Purrfect Advice
Purrfect Passion
A Purrfect Gnomeful
Purrfect Cover
Purrfect Patsy
Purrfect Son
Purrfect Fool
Purrfect Fitness
Purrfect Setup
Purrfect Sidekick
Purrfect Deceit
Purrfect Ruse
Purrfect Swing
Purrfect Cruise
Purrfect Harmony
Purrfect Sparkle
Purrfect Cure
Purrfect Cheat
Purrfect Catch
Purrfect Design
Purrfect Life
The Mysteries of Max Omnibuses
Omnibus 1 (Books 1-3)
Omnibus 2 (Books 4-6)
Omnibus 3 (Books 7-9)
Omnibus 4 (Books 10-12)
Omnibus 5 (Books 13-15)
Omnibus 6 (Books 16-18)
Omnibus 7 (Books 19-21)
Omnibus 8 (Books 22-24)
Omnibus 9 (Books 25-27)
Omnibus 10 (Books 28-30)
Omnibus 11 (Books 31-33)
Omnibus 12 (Books 34-36)
Omnibus 13 (Books 37-39)
The Mysteries of Max Shorts
Purrfect Santa (3 shorts in one)
Purrfectly Flealess
Purrfect Wedding
Nora Steel
Murder Retreat
The Kellys
Murder Motel
Death in Suburbia
Emily Stone
Murder at the Art Class
Washington & Jefferson
First Shot
Alice Whitehouse
Spooky Times
Spooky Trills
Spooky End
Spooky Spells
Ghosts of London
Between a Ghost and a Spooky Place
Public Ghost Number One
Ghost Save the Queen
Box Set 1 (Books 1-3)
A Tale of Two Harrys
Ghost of Girlband Past
Ghostlier Things
Charleneland
Deadly Ride
Final Ride
Neighborhood Witch Committee
Witchy Start
Witchy Worries
Witchy Wishes
Saffron Diffley
Crime and Retribution
Vice and Verdict
Felonies and Penalties (Saffron Diffley Short 1)
The B-Team
Once Upon a Spy
Tate-à-Tate
Enemy of the Tates
Ghosts vs. Spies
The Ghost Who Came in from the Cold
Witchy Fingers
Witchy Trouble
Witchy Hexations
Witchy Possessions
Witchy Riches
Box Set 1 (Books 1-4)
The Mysteries of Bell & Whitehouse
One Spoonful of Trouble
Two Scoops of Murder
Three Shots of Disaster
Box Set 1 (Books 1-3)
A Twist of Wraith
A Touch of Ghost
A Clash of Spooks
Box Set 2 (Books 4-6)
The Stuffing of Nightmares
A Breath of Dead Air
An Act of Hodd
Box Set 3 (Books 7-9)
A Game of Dons
Standalone Novels
When in Bruges
The Whiskered Spy
ThrillFix
Homejacking
The Eighth Billionaire
The Wrong Woman
Copyright © 2021 by Nic Saint. All rights reserved.
Published by Puss in Books Publications.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval without permission in writing from the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Editor: Chereese Graves.
Nic Saint, Purrfect Life (The Mysteries of Max Book 42)
